Wizard Meets Witch
by MMadnessManaged
Summary: Wizard meets witch, wizard falls for witch, wizard's life is never the same. Except Albus Dumbledore is no average wizard. Except his life is far from normal. Except this is no ordinary love story. Introducing a character new to the wizarding world, a heart-warming story that will, hopefully, make you smile :)
1. The importance of a doormouse

**Before I you start reading, I want to just quickly let you know that one of the main characters I talk about in this story doesn't appear in JKR's books, I created her. This might put you off, but please give her a chance, even if you just read a couple of paragraphs. Constructive criticism is welcomed. Thanks! This story is from the point of view of characters that were significant in Helene's and Albus' lives. I hope you enjoy the story, some of the dates and ages of the characters may be wrong, but I shall try my best to make it enjoyable without you shaking your fists at me in frustration. Enjoy! J**

September 2nd 1971 

**Minerva McGonagall**

The first lesson with the new students was always my favourite. Their innocent faces eager to have their thirst for magic quenched made being a teacher worthwhile. I threw a glance over the new comers and looked for potential. This happened to be my own house and I wanted to know what I was dealing with. In the corner there were a couple of scruffy looking boys, who I could tell would be trouble makers. If I only knew what the future held for James Potter and Sirius Black, I would have acted differently around them. A young redheaded girl sat nearby, looking shy and vulnerable, but it was obvious she would make something of her time here at Hogwarts. Her name was Lily Evans, known to you as Lily Potter. There was only one more person who intrigued me. Actually, Helene Clearwater intrigues everyone who has ever seen her, now and then. Another redheaded girl, this time more of an auburn. The first thing to catch my eye was her beauty. She had massive green emerald eyes, shining like they had the strongest enchantment on them, framed with long, elegant lashes. She threw out an aura of pure attractiveness and beauty, but seemed oblivious of this. As I recall, I stopped in my tracks, much to my embarrassment. I didn't care though. The thing that was the most amazing was the magic. It stuck to her left right and centre, longing for her embrace and care. She it oozed from all of her pores, this I have never seen in all my life and will never again. I knew from that second she was special. She hadn't even opened her mouth and all the wisdom of magic she could not possibly know whizzed around her. Her gift was yet to be uncovered by us professors here at Hogwarts. As I awoke from my dream, I realised everyone was staring at either her or I and this made both of us blush, the scarlett flush contrasting beautifully with her creamy skin and causing her to let out a shy giggle. I realised I must remain professional and continue with my lesson as planned. As with all first years, I asked them if they had ever had any experience with magic. Half the class raised their hands and shockingly, Helene did not. I thought it maybe was just the confusion that had caused the previous illusion, but I had never been more wrong in all my life.

It came to the point in the lesson where I stopped talking and let the students perform their first spell. A simple transfiguration of a matchbox to a dormouse. It may seem easy, but the art of performing your first transfiguration spell takes weeks, if not months. Three students offered to try it first, including a ratty boy with the name Peter Pettigrew, none of them succeeding and returning embarrassed to their seats. Of course I reassured them that this was expected and it would take much practice to perform the spell. As I glanced around the room to look for more volunteers, Helene put her hand up and I, naturally, did not refuse. My curiosity would not allow it. She took out her wand and placed the matchbox elegantly in her left hand. In a pure, crystal clear voice she said 'serotopial'. The box started to morph slowly, but then getting faster, until it eventually stopped. Then, with a faint pop, a pure white dormouse with a fluffy coat and twitchy whiskers appeared where the matchbox once was. Half the students at O.W.L level could not perform the spell to such a high standard. My jaw reached the floor. I was amazed. Everyone proceeded to clap, the previous failures a little more reluctantly than the others, and once again her cheeks flushed a rosy pink colour. She returned to her seat, barely managing to sit down before the bell rang.

'Well done class, I am very impressed with what you have achieved this lesson. You may all return to your common room. Miss Clearwater, would you mind staying behind for a moment?'

**Helene Clearwater**

A thousand and one feelings rushed around my head at that moment. Had I done something wrong? Was I in trouble already? What could I have done? Minerva McGonagall had a certain reputation, one that was enough to send an urgent shiver of worry down my spine and make every individual hair alert. Fearful for what was about to occur, I slowly took a step towards her. And then another, and another, until I had reached the stern transfiguration mistress. She looked statuesque, her neat bun not having a single strand of her ebony hair out of place, the lines etched on her aged face being perfectly symmetrical and her impeccable regal posture made her tower above me. I tried to mask my nerves, that were now so severe that my stomach felt like gigantic butterflies were going to burst out of it at any second, but all it resulted in was a very definite gulp.

'You w-w-wanted to see m-me pro-f-f-essor?' I managed to stammer out, while simultaneously trying not to faint.

'Yes Miss Clearwater, I did. Am I correct in saying that you have never performed magic before this lesson? I couldn't help but notice that you didn't raise your hand.' Oh no, I'm not going to be expelled for not knowing magic, am I? Others in the class were in the same situation, but they weren't here! Maybe they lied to make me seem stupid. No, they wouldn't do that…

'Y-yes Professor, b-but I'm a fast learner and I'm sure that in time, I-I'll be able to ca-catch up with-'

I was stopped in my tracks as a smile that would have made the Cheshire cat proud was placed upon Professor McGonagall face. Then, she let out a loud ringing laugh that bounced off the stone walls, making all my previous worry fade away into nothingness.

'My dear, it seems that you have grasped the wrong end of the broomstick. You are not here because I feel you are an underperformer, in fact quite the opposite! You completed that spell with perfection. Would you mind doing so again?'

I could hardly believe my ears; the strict Scottish teacher was giving me a compliment! On my first day! I withdrew my want out of my fresh maroon robes and studied it a moment before casting the spell.

I was immediately cast back to the day that I ventured into Ollivanders, an excited young witch hungry to venture into the world of magic. My dreams could not be fulfilled though, until I had bought the trusty friend that is I would heavily depend on in the future. It took a while to find the appropriate one, but when it was placed in my hands it was as if I was complete, even though I never knew a part of me was missing. I stood admiring it for a while. It was made of silver lime, a beautiful pale wood with undertones of green and silver, which reminded me of the reflection of Christmas lights in shop windows. The core was a single strand of unicorn hair, which I imagined shone like the pearly shadow of the moon. My favourite part though was the intricate detail that had been carefull carved upon its surface. A vine of ivy, each single leaf delicately shaped to be unique to its brothers and sisters, climbed up the wand, entwining perfectly with my fingers as I lightly flicked my wrist, begging that this was the wand for me. All of a sudden, Ollivanders was plunged into darkness. For a moment I lost all hope and was on the verge of crying for I believed that the wand and I were not destined to become one. Then, an eerie glow started to come from the walls. Wondering what it was, I stepped closer and then realised that each individual wand box was being lit from within, filling my body with the warm substance that is hope. Every single wand in the whole shop began to shine brighter and brighter, reaching a crescendo, until eventually I had to close my eyes. It was at this moment that the lights were restored to normal and Ollivander threw me a wide smile and told me that he expected great things from me with that wand. I refused to take my most precious possession out of my hand for the rest of the day, in fear that it was going to be taken from me.

As I awoke from my dream, I couldn't help but notice Professor McGonagall chuckle lightly under her breath, sending blood into my already rosy cheeks and causing me to flush furiously, a habit that I never managed to rid myself of. Focusing on the task at hand I placed a matchbox in my palm for the second time that day. I thought of what I wanted the mouse to look like, before reciting the enchantment. The box spun in my hand for a few brief moments, before it vanished and there in its place was a sweet little mouse, this time with a sooty coat, much like the colour of the sky on a starless night. It let out a little squeak, making me giggle lightly. I moved my gaze to the witch who was leaning over my shoulder, but she was not looking at the mouse like I had been previously, but at me. This time I did not blush, but threw myself into her arms for I was so full of joy that I couldn't think of not sharing it with anyone else. She told me many years later that the hug caught her off guard, which I had registered already from the brief expression of surprise that was inflicted upon her face. It didn't last long though and cascades of laughter were released from her thin mouth as she wrapped her arms around me. It was at this moment that my friendship with Minerva McGonagall was founded, a friendship that would last as long as we would both live and beyond. If you are reading this now Minerva, I want to tell you that I love you, am still thinking of you and I am so honoured to call you my best friend. Thank you.

'Come on little one, I think it's time that we take you to see Professor Dumbledore.' She managed to whisper out after her peals of laughter had left her breathless. And with that I took her slender hand and allowed myself to be lead to the headmaster's office, where I was going to meet the man that would change my life forever.

**Albus Dumbledore **

On the day that I met Helene, I remember sitting at my desk, filling out a Honeydukes form for my next order of Sherbet Lemons. For some reason or another, they never seemed to last long. I quickly scribbled down _58 bags_, but then thought better of it, as I really was eating too many sweets. I let out a sigh and reluctantly wrote _47_ _bags_ in its place, hoping that they would last for at least a week or two this time.

I saw Fawkes head cock to the side briefly, letting me know that someone was about to enter. He really was the most incredible bird, his burgundy plumage shining brightly in the midday sunlight. I quickly shoved the forms into the bottom drawer of my desk, in fear that Poppy Pomfrey was about to burst through the doors and give me another hour long lecture about how sugar will rot my teeth and then I'll regret it. Three sharp knocks was all it took and he knew who was there. Confirming my suspicions, my deputy came bursting through the doors, her normal sense of calm lost to the winds, making me arch an eyebrow that would make her proud.

'Minerva my dear, whatever is wrong, I haven't seen you so excited since Flourish and Blotts had a half price offer on all animagi books!' She didn't even roll her eyes at me or open her mouth to object to my teasing.

'I have someone that I want to show you. You might be a bit surprised Albus… but in a positive way.' Minerva had a slight tone of mischief in her voice, one I hadn't heard in a while. What treasure could she about to show me? 'Helene, you may come in now'. Minerva McGonagall was addressing a student by their first name? Had someone abducted the real transfiguration mistress and slipped a couple of her fine hairs into a polyjuice potion? Before I had time to finish my train of thought, the student in question walked through the door and into my life.

**Please review to make a little girl's day :) **


	2. The birth of five friendships

**CHAPTER 2**

September 2nd 1971 

**Helene Clearwater**

As I stepped through the grand oak door, a fine piece of carpentry that showed my personal favourite Beedle the Bard tale, 'The Fountain of Fair Fortune', I was struck by the grandeur of the office. It was a large circular room, with a high domed ceiling and arched windows that gave a spectacular view of the extensive grounds, particularly the Black Lake. Nearly every inch of the stone walls were covered in oil paintings of previous headmasters, many of whom were dozing, including Phineas Nigellus, who let out a loud snore that ricocheted off the surrounding walls, creating an echoing effect. Rickety tables supported several whirring silver instruments, which I knew were related to astronomy from the little research I had done upon receiving my Hogwarts acceptance letter. Several of them were twirling round simultaneously, almost as if they were performing ballet at the English National Opera. In the centre of the room was a solid mahogany desk, which had numerous leather bound books stacked up high on it. Sitting at the desk was a tall, thin man who wore a cloak of shimmery silver that was embroidered with stars. He had a long white beard that was kept neat by a chain and wore a pair of half-moon glasses that sat upon his crooked nose. He looked extremely wise and his warm smile offset his intimidating appearance and made me feel right at home. The old wizard slowly began to rise and walk towards me until the faint scent of peppermint and cinnamon was dancing around in my nose. His startling bright blue eyes, that shone like the brightest star on Midsummer's Eve, pierced my bubble and caused me to look directly at him. His gaze was different to what I expected, not necessarily the curious look that people shot me every few seconds, but more tender and affectionate. He kept doing so until I started to feel slightly uncomfortable and threw a confused look at my transfiguration teacher. She cleared her throat lightly, but the headmaster continued to stare.

"Albus…" Still no reply came from the wizard in front of me. Professor McGonagall let out a brief smile and gave me a very uncharacteristic wink, before adopting her terrifying teacher persona. "ALBUS PERCIVAL WULFRIC BRIAN DUMBLEDORE WILL YOU PAY ATTENTION TO ME WHEN I AM SPEAKING TO YOU?" Professor Dumbledore's head immediately shot round and he had an expression that reminded me of a scared school boy or perhaps a frightened puppy. To this day that face never fails to make me laugh and moments when I felt down I used to recall that memory several times in my pensieve until I felt better. I remember letting out an infectious giggle leading my professors to laugh loudly and the serious atmosphere to dissolve.

**Albus Dumbledore**

Albus Dumbledore, you barmy old coot, pull yourself together. Despite this thought, I still found it incredibly difficult to pull my eyes away from the girl. When she first entered it felt like the universe had done a somersault, as if my whole life had lead up this wondrous moment. I didn't know why for the life of me. After Minerva's slightly severe warning, actually very severe, now I come to think of it, I realised that I was acting very unprofessional and had to continue. It was obvious why she had been brought here, I could sense it from the moment she entered; she possessed an extremely high raw magic potential. In fact, I have only ever seen three other people have it to such a standard, one of them standing directly next to me, another who seemed to have vanished off the face of the planet and Tom's whereabouts was currently unknown, and the other was me.

"Hello Miss Clearwater, my name, as you just heard our dear transfiguration mistress exclaim, is Albus Dumbledore. Well, at least that is the shortened version, life is too precious to spending time reciting my whole ridiculous name, so you may call me Professor Dumbledore. I take it that it's your first full day at Hogwarts School, how are you finding it?"

The young witch paused for a second, to ponder on how she should answer the question. I initially thought it was perhaps because she felt slightly out of place in my daunting office, however I was quite wrong, for her answer was confident and strong, reminding me slightly of a younger Minerva McGonagall. "Admittedly, I was slightly scared at the prospect of starting this whole new chapter of my life this morning, but I couldn't possibly feel more different now! The castle is truly beautiful and I feel very fortunate to be given the chance to be a part of Hogwarts' rich history. I'm very curious and excited to find out more about the wizarding world and starting the rest of my classes, for I thoroughly enjoyed transfiguration this morning and I hope that all of my lessons will be as interesting." Well, she was definitely enthusiastic, a trait of a true Gryffindor. Minerva let out a tiny smile at the mention of transfiguration, conveying to me that Helene had definitely created a positive first impression on his deputy.

"I'm sure you will, Hogwarts is place of hope and opportunity, but one can only receive what they put in, naturally. I hope that you will work hard, whilst enjoying the time you spent at the castle as-". I was rather rudely interrupted by the sound of the tower's distinctive chime, signifying the start of lunch. "Oh, it seems as if we lost track of time. It was a pleasure to meet you Miss Clearwater, I expect I will be seeing you sometime in the near future. You may go down to the Great Hall for lunch now, Professor McGonagall and I will be joining you shortly." She bode us a polite farewell, before leaving the chamber.

"I see why you brought her here Minerva. She reminds me slightly of yourself on your first day, bursting with intrigue. I see she possesses a very strong raw magic potential, how did she perform in class?"

"Exceptionally well Albus, she not only performed the complete transfiguration of a matchbox to a dormouse on her first attempt, but did so flawlessly. However, this is not the main matter that is occupying my mind. Would you care to explain to me what happened a few moments ago? It was as if you had an impediment jinx upon you, your eyes didn't leave her for more than a second."

Ah, so I hadn't been dreaming, I had made an utter fool of myself. Despite the fact I had a fiercely strong relationship with Minerva, I felt unable to tell her my true feelings. Partly due to the fact that they felt very private, but mainly as I wasn't sure how to put them into words.

"Really? I hadn't noticed; when one reaches my age you occasionally forget what you are doing. I think it would be best if we were to head down to the Great Hall for lunch now, we don't want to be late." She quickly cast me a suspicious look, showing that she didn't quite believe me, but she had sensed that I didn't wish to talk about it. I gave her a sly nod before leaving the room.

**Helene Clearwater**

As I entered the Great Hall, I was suddenly struck with an unfamiliar jolt of panic. I had no idea where to sit. Now, this may seem to you to be a petty worry and now I quite agree with you when you put it in perspective, however for an eleven year old in a foreign school on her first day, it was quite frightening. I cast my eye upon the Gryffindor table and searched for someone I recognised. Although it took several moments, my gaze lay upon a group of five students, four boys and a girl. I remembered that I had sat next to the girl in transfiguration this morning and shared a dormitory with her too. As I gradually made my way over to the table, I was conscious of a few people staring at me. My hand immediately flew to my French plait that I had hurriedly put together this morning, in fear that it had unravelled itself, but it was perfectly respectable. The group of five turned around to look at me and I was extremely tempted to turn away and head to the opposite end of the hall, where Professors McGonagall and Dumbledore had just taken their seats, when the girl extended her hand to me.

'Oh, hello Helene! I was just wondering where you were, I was going to offer you a seat with us, you seemed a little lost earlier. Come, sit next to me, I could do with a few more girls around here; these boys are doing my head in. Calm down Sirius, I wasn't being serious… oops, sorry, no pun intended, honestly. Here, try these crisps, they're delicious! My parents don't normally allow me to have them, but I suppose we're independent women now and can make our own choices, don't you agree?'

I immediately took to Lily Evans, gave her a friendly nod and accepted her delicate hand. It was only once I had sat down that I realised how hungry I was. Sandwiches were piled upon each other to the point where they resembled the leaning tower of Pisa. There were fragrant soups, crisp salads, oodles of crisps and so much more.

"You're the girl who performed that spell in transfiguration aren't you? Well, you've done well to win over old McGonagall on your first day. My name's James by the way, James Potter" I observed the boy over my steaming hot bowl of pasta. He had a cheeky manor to his face, his wild, unkempt hair sticking out at all angles and he had a twinkle of defiance in his eye. The boy next to him let out a weak cough, drawing my attention away from James. He reminded me vaguely of a mouse; his nose twitched at odd intervals and he had a tendency to blink slightly more than necessarily. To his left sat Remus Lupin, who me studied me through his intelligent eyes. I seemed to have passed the test as he threw me a broad smile. Finally, directly in front of me, was Sirius Black, the boy whom Lily had teased earlier. His eyes were a rich chocolate brown and his hair fell effortlessly around his shoulders. He winked slightly before returning to his plate. "Hopefully you'll be able to earn us a few more house points and then we'll be able to beat Slytherin this year, Merlin knows that they deserve to be put in their place." continued James.

"Don't count your snitched before you've caught them James, Slytherin haven't been beaten in over 5 years, our chances don't look to good" replied Remus.

"Well, I'll try my best; it would be great to win during our first year! Why do Slytherins need to be put in their place? What's wrong with them?" I asked.

"Oh, I forgot you and Lily don't know much about magic. Let me explain" began Sirius. "Slytherins are a pile of stuck up, arrogant, vile, foul, loathsome dragon dung. Gryffindors have hated them pretty much since the school was formed many years ago and I don't that's going to be changing anytime soon. The only thing perhaps more annoying than them is Peeves, although he can be a laugh as long as you're not at the receiving end of one of his water balloons when you're 10 minutes late for Potions." I couldn't help but laugh at this. I imagined a great creature with a massive head and eyes as big as saucers holding brightly coloured balloons, that repeatedly hit Sirius over the head until he was walking around, dizzy, in circles. Everyone else joined in too, perhaps envisaging the same picture as me. Several minutes later we were all hiccoughing into our pumpkin juice, when Sirius managed to say "Would you like me to show you him? Maybe we could even get him to put a dungbomb in Slytherin's common room, how funny would that be?"

"They're not too dangerous are they?" I couldn't help but think. The young boy merely rolled his eyes and grabbed my hand, before pulling me out of the Great Hall along with the three others, as we began the first adventure that our long friendship would take us on.


	3. The ways of literature

**CHAPTER 3**

October 7th 1971 

**Lily Evans**

Over the following weeks, Helene and I became as thick as thieves. She was welcomed with open arms into our little group and life became very enjoyable. The boys, more commonly known as the marauders, were the apprentices of the sixth year trouble-makers. Wherever they went there was a faint whiff of stink pellets trailing behind them, or teeth marks in the walls from their latest incident with a Fanged Frisbee. Helene and I were known as the inseparable pair; we barely left each other's sides. Upon finally arriving back at our dormitory later that day, the first thing we did was to push our beds together, so that they were side by side. This proved slightly tricky at first as neither of us were strapping young wizards, but after enough sweat was shed to fill the Black Lake, Helene had the sense to use a well executed levitation spell that she had mastered earlier on that day in Charms. That night, we lay next to each other, hand in hand and just poured our hearts out. We talked about everything and nothing, our homes, family, friends, hobbies, interests and soon enough it was as we had known one another since the dawn of time. Our eyelids grew heavy and sleep engulfed us as we watched the glowing embers of the fire slowly sizzle into unconsciousness.

As expected Helene did more than excel in every lesson, she absorbed every miniscule piece of information like a sponge. She had the teachers worshiping the ground she walked on, much to the annoyance of the Slytherins. The only lesson anyone gave her a run for her Galleons was Potions. Apparently I had a certain flare for the subject, or at least that's what Professor Slughorn had said. Any free moment that I had to myself was spent pouring over advanced alchemy books, attempting to fill my mind with the recipes until it felt fit to burst.

Yes, if I was sure about one thing, it was that life was good… for now.

**Minerva McGonagall**

The initial weeks of the first term had always been the most relaxing; any prospects of future examinations were pushed deep into the murky depths of the students' brains. I observed my first years with a watchful eye, not letting them slip out of my glance for more than a few hours at a time. Potter and Black had already caused me enough trouble for a life time, I was still removing flecks of ash from my hair after one of their Dr. Filibuster's Fabulous fireworks had become _slightly_ out control the previous week. The tapestry of Ilwhich the Incompetent would never be the same.

I packed up my apparatus after a particularly disastrous lesson with the Gryffindor and Slytherin first years, fanaticising the rest of my evening which would involve sitting by my fire, with a fragrant cup of jasmine tea and the most recent issue of 'Transfiguration Today'. I looked up briefly to observe the student in front of me who was gathering up her books in her arms. I had become rather fond of Helene over the past month, her skills never failing to astound me and her dry sense of humour always putting a smile on my face. She reminded me vaguely of my much younger self, her hair always pinned to perfection and her textbooks organised in the order of which she would need them. As she turned around to walk out of the door, she was approached by two of her fellow classmates, both from Slytherin. They threw each other a menacing look before promptly bumping into her, resulting in all of her books to cascade onto the floor.

"Would you both watch where you're going please, books tend to be heavy and I would rather if they didn't end up on my feet." She exclaimed. If this had been said to a stranger it would have been deemed as extremely rude, however it was common knowledge that the Slytherins were trying to make Helene's life as difficult as possible.

"We were well aware of where we were going, know-it-all" The blonde one replied.

The corners of her mouth twitched, almost as if she found his remark humorous. "Is that so? Well, maybe if you had been able to complete your transformation of a needle to a compass you would have a better sense of direction." Helene barely had time to react before she had been thrown to the floor and I came rushing to her aid.

"What on earth do you think you're doing? No one has the right to attack a fellow student, especially in a classroom. Explain yourselves!"I exclaimed. It was evident from the expression painted across their faces they had not expected me to react in such a way. Their eyes shone with fear and their gazes fell upon the floor.

"Well, you see Professor… I mean… you can't honestly think that she's thinking of all of this stuff on her own and, you see, she should be put in her place" replied the other, slightly plumper of the two.

"No Mr Elliott, I do not see and it is not up to you to dictate what I 'honestly think'. Just because another student happens to be more intelligent than you, which in this case is by no means difficult, does not mean they are cheating. Now, I shall see both of you in my office at seven o'clock sharp, where you will serve your detention. 50 points will be taking from Slytherin and I would like you to apologise to Miss Clearwater immediately". By this point Helen had already lifted herself up off the floor and was collecting her books, in an attempt to redeem herself, however there was an unmistakable wounded look on her face and it nearly broke my heart. The Slytherins muttered something vaguely resembling a 'sorry' and swiftly left the room.

She turned around completely in order to face me properly, by which point salty tears leaked from her now glistening eyes and created tracks on her rosy cheeks. She said faintly under her breath "Thanks Professor". I don't know whether it was the gentle tone of her voice or the genuine look in her eyes, but through those two simple words she reminded me what it was like to be a young witch, only eleven years old. I walked towards her and enveloped her in my embrace, eager to protect the child in my arms. "But you know, I could have hexed them into next week." I chuckled slightly under my breath, for it was something I had heard myself say many a time.

"Would you like me to show you something?"

**Helene Clearwater**

It turned out that 'something' was Professor McGonagall's personal library, a safe haven for readers alike. Three of the walls in her sitting room were lined from floor to ceiling with hundreds, if not thousands of literary works, novels and school books. On the other wall was an enormous stone fireplace, engraved with the Gryffindor crest. Above hung a 15th century mirror, carefully fashioned to bear the words 'traeht aevar behtr ofror rima'. In the centre of the room was an oak coffee, holding yet more books. One sofa adorned with crimson and gold cushion and two similar armchairs surrounded it. I ran my hands over the thick leather binds of the books: they felt soft as they caressed my fingers. Never in my life had I imagined a place so peaceful.

"How can you ever leave?" I couldn't help but ask, already envisioning my future living room and how similar it would be.

"Sometimes with great difficultly, but other times quite easily, for my students, such as yourself, make it worthwhile. Would you like a drink? I believe Professor Dumbledore left some hot chocolate in my kitchen from when he visited me last." I flashed her a wide smile and nodded my head enthusiastically before returning to the books. I selected a rather interesting looking one, again leather bound, but this time bearing the crest of the school. It was titled 'Hogwarts: A History'. I began to flick through the pages and soon enough my pores began to absorb every letter and my thoughts hung on every word. If it weren't for Professor McGonagall returning with the drinks I don't think I'd have ever been woken from my trance.

"Ah, I see you've found 'Hogwarts: A History'. One of my personal favourites, although I suppose they all are really. Albus often said that being asked to define one's favourite book is like choosing one's favourite child." The way she talked about books made them seem as if they had souls. I came to realise that people had been both wrong and right about Minerva McGonagall. Yes, she was stern and didn't take any nonsense. She did not tolerate idiots and they did not tolerate her. But, no one had ever told me much beyond that. I was never informed that not only did she need food and water to fuel her body, but also passion. That in her eyes history, literature and art were not only a means of passing the time, but a lifestyle. She did not only teach transfiguration, but she taught life and that is not something that many people can say.

**Thank you for reading, please review for another chapter:)**

**Oh and to my beautiful guest anon, you'll have to continue reading and reviewing to find out.**


	4. The discovery of a childhood

******OKAY LET ME JUST SAY BEFORE YOU READ THIS THAT AFTER POSTING THIS CHAPTER I REALISED HOW UNHAPPY I WAS WITH IT SO I AM GOING TO ADD MORE TO IT BEFORE I PUBLISH MORE CHAPTERS SO PLEASE BARE WITH ME. COME BACK IN A FEW DAYS AND RE-READ THIS CHAPTER IF YOU WANT TO FIND OUT MORE :)**

**CHAPTER 4**

October 29th 1971 

**Sirius Black**

"Sirius, hurry up or we're going to come in!" I heard Helene call from outside our dormitory.

I frantically searched for my trousers, looking under the humongous mahogany beds that held us every night, but my hunt was unsuccessful and I had to rely on James to give me a pair of his.

"Okay, you can come in now, how do I look?" I asked.

As Lily and Helene entered, their looks of amazement fell upon me simultaneously. Or so I thought at the time- it turns out they were trying to hold in their laughter, forcing them to adopt bizarre facial expressions.

I was dressed from head to toe in my makeshift Quidditch gear. On each leg, I had a leather shin pad, which I had borrowed, or rather stolen, from my pompous idiot of a brother Regulus. The previous summer I had found an old crash helmet in Grimmauld Place Square and had spent many hours painting it the perfect shade of maroon and decorated it with countless, admittedly slightly deformed, lions. Needless to say, my Salazar Slytherin idolising parents were not pleased. I suppose it was lucky I was put in Gryffindor, otherwise the helmet would have been pretty damn useless. Unsurprisingly, these items, paired with my odd scarlet football boots and mouth guard, did not create the desired impression.

"So, do I look okay? Do you think I'll make the team?" I asked rather nervously.

"Well… you do look rather safe, so that's a bonus" offered Lily, still stifling back her laughter.

"Yes, and you will certainly be the most uniquely dressed member of the team, they'll appreciate you being original!" added Helene.

You had to give it to them, they did always try their best to see the positives in life. That's one of the reasons why I loved them so much. Although, no matter what they could have said, nothing could have brought my hopes down, for the day had finally arrived for me to try out as Gryffindor chaser. I had been dreaming about it ever since I was a young wizard and nothing could have worsened my mood. Well, almost nothing…

**Helene Clearwater**

"Don't worry Sirius, I'm sure Madam Pomfrey will be able to replace Andrew Waters' teeth soon enough." I said rather unconvincingly.

"Yeah and I'm sure that, you know, Alice Reeves' arm will be fixed in no time." added James.

"And don't worry about the Ravenclaw spectator's stand, what's the point of having magic if you can't use it to fix a couple of pieces of wood, right?" Remus attempted to say convincingly.

Although we tried our best to console our friend, nothing was working. His spirits had dropped from 'I can take on the whole world and no one can stop me' to 'please find a large hole and bury me in it until the end of time'. I wish I could have told him that the tryout hadn't gone so badly, but I couldn't lie to him.

He had strutted onto the Quidditch pitch as if even Ludo Bagman, who was then Captain of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team and was expected to become and international player, was inferior to him. It didn't help that he was the only first year and was wearing… do you know, I don't even know what he was wearing, just that it was ridiculous. Lily and I had tried to coax him into changing earlier, but he just didn't listen. He kept saying 'I'm going to be the youngest Quidditch player in 80 years, just you wait and see'. His prospects weren't looking hopeful before he mounted the broom and by the time he had dismounted chaos had broken loose.

"Sirius, really don't worry about it, you can always try again next year, you'll have plenty of time to practice before then. I'll try out with you if you want, you know, give you some support." James said hopefully.

"I suppose" Sirius mumbled under his breath. He didn't seem convinced…

November 3rd 1971 

**Minerva McGonagall**

_Mark third year essays, find horned toads, plan sixth year lessons, schedule seventh year- _My thoughts were suddenly rather rudely interrupted when I heard a horrific sound escaping from Albus' office.

**"Dashing through the snow, in a one horse open sleigh, over hills we go, laughing all the–"**

"Albus, would you mind turning that down please, people on the other side of Hogsmeade will be able to hear you!" I exclaimed as I briskly entered the room, trying to find the source of the sound.

**"way HA HA HA" **he continued, oblivious to my presence.

"Albus, why must you always insist on playing those God awful muggle Christmas songs? It's only November, for Merlin's sake!" I cried.

"Minerva, my dear, come here and dance with me." Before I had time to object he had grabbed me around my waist and pulled me against him, as he began to sway from side to side. I couldn't help but laugh, for it wasn't everyday that one got to watch the greatest wizard of their time make an utter fool of himself.

That was one of the reasons why I loved him.

"Come here you daft old wizard." I put my arms around his neck and reached for his lips. In return he lowered his head and found mine.

"Do you think there's any way that my 12 o'clock meeting could be postponed?" he whispered into my ear as I kissed his neck. I looked at the clock. It read 11:59.

"I'm sure we'll be able to figure something out…"

June 19th 1972 

**Helene Clearwater**

Christmas and Easter passed in the wave of a wand and my first year at Hogwarts was coming to an end. The past year had been the happiest of my life and I couldn't wait to dive into the second one. Exams were over and thankfully Lily and I had passed everyone with flying colours.

After my first evening with her, I began to visit Professor McGonagall more frequently, until our gatherings became a weekly event. We talked about everything from school life to food and she even began to teach me to play wizards chess although, I hadn't managed to beat her yet, much to my dismay. If one thing was for certain, I was thankful for her. Under unlikely circumstances, we had formed a friendship. I only confided this in my five closest friends and she only in hers- Professor Dumbledore. I hadn't quite placed my finger on it yet, but I knew something was going on between her and the other Professor and I was determined to find out what, but whenever I questioned her, she hastily changed the subject.

I left for her chambers, for the final time that year, in order to find out more about her relationship with the mysterious headmaster. However, as we began to talk, my plan did not begin to unravel, if anything, I was the one who unravelled. I returned to my dormitory having communicated my relationships to her. That night I told for the second time, the first being to Lily, I told someone the truth about my family, for I finally felt that she was ready to know and I realised that hiding my emotions in the dark would not keep me in the light.

I never had the perfect family life, although I suppose who does? I never had the parents who loved each other unconditionally. I never had a relationship with my mother that meant I could be completely be myself with her. She never showered me with the love and affection that I so desperately longed for. That was the truth of life, not everyone could have the fairytale and not everyone did.

My mother did not intentionally fall pregnant with me and married my father to escape the judgement of the public eye. My father did and always has cared deeply her and I both. When he revealed to her that he was a wizard, she did not accept it, for she could not be with someone who did not fit in with the status quo. So, she forced him to lock away his wand for good and he agreed, for he would have walked to the end of the earth just to make her life that little bit better.

In my mother's eyes, I was not a witch and therefore I should not grow up believing that I was and so I lived a muggle life. I grew up in a world where magic was just a myth and witches and wizards were only fictional in non-fiction. I believed that brooms were only used for sweeping the floor and that a snitch was the equivalent to a tale-teller. I was oblivious to who I was and consequently felt that a part of me was always missing. My father was always the one to console me. Often, when we were alone, we would embark upon adventures and explore the ends of the earth without even having to leave our garden. We would slay the mightiest dragon and defeat the darkest wizards. That's why I loved books so much- they gave me hope for a better place when my father was absent. He meant everything to me and seeing his face when I received my Hogwarts letter captured the essence of magic. My mother's… not so much. She couldn't deny who I was then, but still tried deprive me of it. Only after my father threatened to leave her if she did not agree, did she allow me to go. So, she spread the rumour that I was off to a foreign boarding school and we bid each other goodbye.

I loved Hogwarts so much because there I was completely myself. I was free. I was home.

**I can't tell you how much I appreciate your reviews, please keep the coming because they encourage me to write faster and better J**


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